Health Promotion in Minority Population
Introduction
More people from countries worldwide migrate to the United States of America for various reasons, including living the American dream. The USA has easy access to quality and affordable medical and education for many people than their home countries. Currently, the American population is characterized by numerous minority groups like Asian-Americans. Generally, an ethnic minority entails a group of people who differ in color, culture, spirituality, or race from the primary group in which they live. The diverging characteristics of the minority group are mainly exhibited in characteristics ranging from their language accent, regimes, customs, type of foods, mode of dressing, region or ethnic values, and social-political beliefs, among others (Kwon et al., 2015). This essay focuses on explaining Asian American ethnic group and their health status. It will depict how race and ethnicity influence health, inequalities, and nutritional challenges concerning this ethnic group. It will also examine the group’s barriers to health due to culture, socioeconomic background, education, sociopolitical factors, and health promotion activities. The essay will also describe the most effective health promotion prevention for Asian Americans, certain cultural beliefs, practices, theories, and models.
Ethnic Minority-Asian Americans
As defined by the American Census Bureau, Asian Americas are individuals originating or having a background in any subcontinents in the Far East, southeastern Asia, or India (Kwon et al., 2015). According to the American Census Bureau 2018 report, Asian Americans make up about 5.4% of the American population, with the highest population being found in California, New York, Texas, New Jersey, Illinois, and Washington DC. The proportions of individuals above the age of five differ among this minority group. Also, most individuals in this minority group are not fluent in English: both written and spoken. Approximately 51% of this ethnic group works in management and related professions. Moreover, it is worth noting that ladies in this minority group have a high life expectancy (85.8 years) than other minority or convectional groups in the United States (Know et al., 2015).
Current Health Status and Health Disparities
The Asian Americans are highly susceptible to various diseases and disorders, including obesity, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), cancer, hypertension, and cardiovascular diseases, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, hepatitis, tuberculosis, and liver disease compared to their white counterpart (Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2018). Also, they have a considerable low fresh fruit consumption rate, contributing to the high prevalence of chronic disorders (Kwon et al., 2015). The high prevalence and incidence of these health conditions among this minority group is significantly influenced by their race and ethnicity (Carteret, 2016). Cancer and cardiovascular disease are among the leading cause of mortality among Asian Americans in the USA, while hepatitis is the most significant health risk among this ethnicity. They account for over 50 percent of all death caused by hepatitis B in the USA,
Psychological health conditions among Asian Americans are also significantly high. Studies report that Asian Americans above the age of 65 have the highest suicide rate in the country (Falkner, 2018). Besides, Asian American teenage girls have the highest depression symptoms than their white counterparts (Carteret, 2016). Asian American females have a high risk of contracting osteoporosis, and most of them are allergic to lactose. Besides having the highest rate of tuberculosis (TB) among this ethnic group, it has the highest number of smokers among young between the ages of 7 to 12 years.
Health Barriers
Limited finances are a significant obstacle towards quality medical coverage among Asian America. Most individuals in this category can are not qualified for Medicaid and cannot afford private hospitals. Besides low finances, they also face social and language barriers that discourage or prevent them from acquiring the necessary health services (Kwon et al.,2015). Notably, they experience challenges in comprehending the USA medical framework and administration due to limited English knowledge. Research surveys show that many Asian Americans acknowledge that most American medical specialists do not understand the Asian culture and values they deem essential to their health. Convectional customary values and convictions limit a person’s ability to seek appropriate health care (Carteret, 2016). Owing to these convectional approaches and beliefs on health, most Asian Americans do not acknowledge, appreciate, or perceive the necessity of seeking modern healthcare.
Health convictions influence how people perceive healthcare, impacting the accuracy of a person’s history and acquirements of the necessary healthcare from Western healthcare providers. Asian traditional medicine and health practices, including acupuncture, herbalism, and martial arts, are an essential part of Asian American culture (Carteret, 2016). Also, there is a level of stereotyping and, in part, disgrace associated with seeking psychological disorder treatments (Falkner, 2018). As a result, the feeling of discomfort carries over to other facets of an individual’s health, like sexual wellness. Talking about sex is taboo among Asian cultures, and many Asian Americans may disregard pursuing preventative treatment for some sex-related issues like pap smears and breast examination.
Health Promotion Activities
Health promotion in Asian Americans is mainly founded on prevention measures in four key areas. This approach is primarily meant for preventing chronic diseases and encouraging quality health among minority groups.
- Epidemiology and Surveillance: It includes gathering information from various data sources, identifying social and environmental factors that influence health (Falkner, 2018). It also includes reviewing policies that influence chronic diseases, especially those linked to smoking, consumption of certain foods, and community water treatment (CDC, 2018). Identifying the number of Asian Americans undergoing preventive health services like cancer screening, diabetes control, and obesity, among others, is imperative as it helps healthcare providers to use health information technology to advance effective healthcare.
- Environmental Approaches: The quality environment promotes and supports healthy behavior in community settings, including schools and workplaces (Falkner, 2018). Health approaches that target the environment are practical and have a long time effect on population health.
- The intervention of health care systems: The establishment of high-quality health care systems can improve medical intervention services among specific populations. These medical services can be used to curb or prevent certain diseases, minimize their risk factors, and manage health complications resulting from such diseases. Therefore, the provision of quality preventive and health management services can help in minimizing health disparities among the identified groups.
- Sustainable Community health programs: linking community health programs to health services and intervention programs, especially to people suffering from chronic diseases, can improve the individual’s quality of life. It also helps manage the disease’s progression, avoid complications, and minimize the need for more specialized healthcare, which is expensive (Falkner, 2018). This initiative means that health providers can refer their patients to specialized community programs with community organizations enabling health providers to get reimbursed by health insurance.
Leininger’s Culture Care Theory
The theory accentuates that cultural assessments entail the systematic evaluation of people, groups, as well as societies concerning their cultural convictions, morals and practices to identify certain requirements and establish the necessary intervention practices (Busher Betancourt, 2016). Hence, through healthcare systems’ evolution and caring for different types of patients with different health complications, nurses are obliged to earn a sense of cultural practices. Through proper communication, the nurse can gain insights into patients’ medical history, helping the nurse to appreciate human cultural diversity and apply the knowledge in helping patients. Leininger’s Theory of Tran-cultural Nursing, supported by consideration and communication between nurses and the patients, significantly integrates the patients’ cultural convictions, ethics, morals, and values into each juncture of the nursing activities. This integration helps o improve the quality of care provided to minority groups
